‘My life will never be the same again,’ says Nkiping Lenaikoi
Rewind nearly two years and you would have found the mother-of-seven doing a two hour trek to get water every day.
But no longer. Nkiping has benefited from a Tearfund project to provide easier access to water in her part of northern Kenya.
She and other members of her community were paid to build a silango (earth dam) to provide water for their community.
An earth dam taking shape in drought-hit northern Kenya. Picture: Tearfund
‘The money I got has helped me a lot. I bought some female goats, bought clothes, a school uniform and paid school fees for my children,’ said Nkiping.
‘I was also able to buy sugar, flour and cooking fat for my family. Tearfund has changed my life. I have goats that will give me milk and there is a silango where I can draw water.’
Nkiping’s story is just one that has emerged from Tearfund’s disaster management programme in north Kenya which has come to an end after 18 months work.
Food aid
It was born out of a severe drought and in the early stages of the crisis, Tearfund was providing extra food to 4,000 moderately and severely malnourished people.
As the situation eased the project moved into disaster risk reduction – helping communities face future droughts.
Three communities now have earth dams to hold water during the rainy season. This will help reduce the period of migration during the dry season when people are forced to move to find water.
This new earth dam will secure water supplies in Kijiji, northern Kenya. Picture: Tearfund
Tearfund’s north Kenya programme has also enabled 114 farmers to plant kitchen gardens in two semi-arable areas, growing kale, tomatoes, spinach, maize and beans.
Anjelina Lolokuria now feeds her children kale in addition to their usual diet of porridge. She also has enough to sell at market.
More than 100 vulnerable households have improved diets with the milk produced by goats which were bought for them from other members of the community.
Animal health workers received updated training and later vaccinated 160,000 livestock.
Middle men
Two women’s groups from Kargi and Korr are benefiting from training on how to generate income. They can now make more money from selling goat skins by being taught not only how to improve their quality but how to negotiate to sell them.
Exploitative middle men are now cut out of the equation as the women sell direct to the tanneries.
Overall Tearfund’s 18-month programme of work has strengthened many communities’ ability to cope with future droughts.
Nkiping Lenaikoi spoke for many: ‘Because of you, Tearfund, my life will never be the same again.’